Dash Dash Dash
by dave-d
Summary: Kaname and Sousuke living together. Why was she excited by Morse Code, of all things?


_Here's a quickie…_

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The chill wind blew strongly.

Kaname's coat edges flapped like the wings of a hungry gull chick, and she made effort to hold her furry hood tight to her head.

Sousuke's no nonsense coat was belted and strapped tight to his body. He wore no hat, but didn't cringe when the cold rain and ice crystals pelted his overly long hair. He was after all, a Specialist.

The young soldier had been a Specialist without a job, after Amalgam had broken Mithril's back, before drifting into the unforgiving pages of history, themselves. But, tonight had been a celebration of sorts, as good fortune and hard work had finally met up and agreed to work together, so to speak.

Kaname handed the brown paper bag…very wet now, and threatening to fall apart… to Sousuke, so that she could reach into her fashionable purse and find her car keys. With a short exclamation of success, she fished out the fob, and pushed a small button twice, unlocking the doors to the dark red Nissan Note, a popular cross between a small hatchback and an MPV, much like its rivals the Ford B-Max, Honda Jazz and Kia Venga. Thanks to its raised seating and boxy shape, it's spacious and easy to get in and out of, a blessing to the young woman and he boyfriend looking to get out of the weather, and head home.

"Well, _that _was nice" Kaname declared, tossing her hat off and shaking out her hair. "And we have plenty of leftovers, since _they_ didn't want any."

'They' included Kurz Weber, Melissa Mao, and Belfang Clouseau. The four had finally managed to start a Protection Agency, where their special skills would be put to fine use. Weapons and vehicles, they would purchase and supply. For special tasks, their clients could supply light armored vehicles and Arm Slaves if they were required. They would work for individuals, companies, or even governments, as long as everything was on the up and up.

_They were the good guys, after all._

Dinner had been at a fine Chinese restaurant, where they had ordered everything on the menu, and had even asked for special dishes that were invented by the cheerful cooks on the spot.. Kurz and Melissa, both expertly inebriated, were headed off to some spot together. Clouseau, tipsy but in control, wanted to visit an anime store one block over. Kaname and Sousuke were headed back to their home.

"Affirmative," Sousuke agreed, more than slightly buzzed. He had been convinced to drink alcohol, because of the significance of the occasion. Unarmed, and expecting no danger that night, he had given in, even though he still had no taste for the stuff. "It will be good to have an income." They had been living off of his considerable savings. Kaname's college tuition was coming out of her father's pocket, along with a small stipend for room and board.

"**Whoa!"** Kaname felt a chill. She had driven through a deep area of pooled water, and it splashed the windshield in a great wave, blinding her for a few moments. She was tipsy herself, and was breaking her ironclad rule of never driving a single block after even drinking a single drop. Now was not the time to end up in the hospital, or behind bars. She had managed to escape permanent capture and debilitating injury, while she was Whispered. Now she was classified as Post-Whispered. While she still remembered things that could be useful, none of it was truly secret or unique any more. Classified? Sure. But not something so rare and so secret something that it needed to be tracked down and possessed at all cost

"Do you need me to pilot the vehicle," Sousuke asked, in terms that still got Kaname's hackles up a bit. "I am certain that I will not damage _this_ _one_." The 'this one' made reference to a prior escapade, when Sousuke's misconceptions had led to an amazing defensive driving demonstration that had made the evening news, and had left Kaname's previous car in two large pieces. 'Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing,' his comment had been. Kaname had taken a cab to a department store, simply to buy a new halisen. It was put to good use, before breaking.

"I am certain too, mister!" Kaname said, after catching her breath at a stoplight. "Because I am _not _leaving the driver's seat!" The car was essentially new. She had found it in their garage this morning, wrapped in a giant red felt bow, a gift from her passenger, one to make up for his earlier peccadillo, and as his first big purchase pending his company start up. She had cried a whole two minuets, before kissing her benefactor for twice as long. During that hot and steamy smooching session, she had even hoped that she could move their physical relationship further, finally. But, if Sousuke were a pistol, he was a pistol with the safety on, physically and emotionally. She had been very understanding, but disappointed just the same.

_Thy had been living together for more than a year now._

"I will bring you out a blanket then, when we get home." Sousuke had been learning about his sense of humor. It had not come with a manual or a set of instruction; but, some things a resourceful man can find out on his own. Of course, like someone learning to use firearms for the first time, many things missed the target. He could still put a few rounds center circle now and again. "A pillow, too." Normally they slept together, by definition, if not by euphemism. "The TV remote stays with _me,_ however."

"Funny," Kaname drawled. In actuality, she was happy to see Sousuke take baby steps in everything that he did now. He was still military in heart and mind, but he was no longer allergic to civilian life. All of the rooms in his heart and mind that had been closed off to him in his earlier life, were now being unlocked and dusted out. Some were partially decorated, or on their way to being furnished. It was his good fortune, that in those realms, Kaname Chidori was a good interior decorator. "Hah _hah_ _**hah."**_

"Uhhh-hh-h." That utterance did not have the same meaning as before. Sousuke held tight to the passenger side 'Jesus strap,' as Kaname took one turn at speed. Her crisp driving wasn't the result of his joke, her temper, or the demon alcohol. That was simply the way that she drove… as if she owned the road, and dared the road to claim otherwise. "Maybe you should-" _Oops._ That had slipped out, like a live nuclear bomb accidentally jettisoned from a Cold War bomber.

"_What,_ Sousuke?" Kaname asked, stopping at another red light and marveling how many crazy people were out in this weather, walking with thier large clear plastic umbrellas, almost looking like the bobbing and weaving jellyfish she'd seen at the city Aquarium the week before with Kyouko and the girls at an impromptu reunion. She pushed a door button that unlocked Sousuke's door. _"Hmmm-mm-m."_

"Nothing," Sousuke said. "I… well…" He slid a hand inside his coat pocket. "I should thank you again." He wasn't being evasive or looking to avoid a verbal barrage. He was being serious. He caressed the cool metal. "You know how much it means to me." Kaname had gone against the grain, not only allowing something in their home, but being the one who purchased it. Sousuke had done so much to protect her. In this way, she could contribute to _his_ protection, in his new job. "And the choice was brilliant." He never asked how she had decided upon the SIG P226 Nitron, whether from one of his former compatriots… a gun supplier's recommendation… or something she had researched on the internet.

"Oh," Kaname said, her face growing warm. "Well, I thank you…." She blew him a kiss. "…And car thanks you…." She blew the horn, starting a woman walking her dog. She was still happier that she found something that Sousuke wanted, and that would help him in his new line of work, than she was for the generous gift that he had gotten her. Sniffing, she thought 'my gift was a replacement,' and 'his gift is a big change in our relationship.' Once again, she bit her lip, wishing for a another change in their relationship. "But you didn't have to pass some test to get _your _present! _Hmmmpppfff!_ Big jerk!"

When Sousuke had first told her that he had gotten her something special, he wouldn't tell her where it was until she proved to him that she had finished with a project that he had given her in his morose and moronic military manner. He had tasked her with learning Morse Code, as an important safety measure. She had complained, of course, asking him point blank how many people knew Morse Code these days… and how many even knew what the hell it was.

_He had been relentless, the way a Pit Bull clamped to a leg is._

"Incorrect," Sousuke said. "Every day brings a test from you." Sousuke wasn't bitching and moaning. There was some truth in what he said. Kaname did find ways to challenge him, and to instruct him in appropriate behaviors. He didn't begrudge her that, seeing that he had once been a fish out of water, and his actions had given her a few gray hairs. He was wise enough not to mention that latter fact anymore. "I am doing my best to be a good student."

"Yes, you are." Kaname smiled. She wasn't going to fuss or act all tsundere now. Sousuke really was trying hard for her. No, not just her. The two of them, and their life together. They had been bonded, by all that had happened. But, it was more than that. They each felt that they had found the missing puzzle piece in the other person. "Teacher is very proud."

Before long, the car was dripping large drops of water on the floor of the garage that Kaname had deftly driven into. They were home. Like Vietnam's many skinny houses, tee three-meter-wide Tokyo house took advantage of its narrow site and reaches skyward to maximize livable space and light. Many years earlier, Japanese studio Architects had designed the home to encompass three dynamic floors, a staircase at the rear, and a central void topped with skylights that allows sunlight to filter down through the levels. The residence is clad in knotted timber, including the garage space.

"We're home," Kaname said, liking the way that sounded. It was something that she said every time that she opened a car door there. The only light in the enclosure were the two driving lights, which would stay illuminated for a minute or two after the key was removed from the ignition.

"Yes," Sousuke said, "it truly is." He had known it was their home from the moment that he signed the papers. But, it wasn't until that moment that he grasped the fulling meaning of that truth. It was a safe place to live. To grow. To be together with Kaname. He was truly safe. Safe from Amalgam. Safe from unemployment. Safe from being torn away from Kaname. Safe from so many things. He was uncertain why it felt like so many weights had been lifted from him… like so many restraining bands had been loosened or cut away altogether… and like so many console lights were glowing green and not yellow or red.

"We should get the food inside," Kaname noted, hanging her coat on a hanger by the door to drip itself dry. She placed her detached hood on a hook, after fluffing it out some. Gloves were left folded on a small shelf. "Us, too." The garage was heated, but still a bit chill. She stood near the doorway into the house, her silhouette sharp in a splash of light from the Nissan.

"I'm certain it will last a little longer," Sousuke said, leaving the soggy bag and its contents on the floor, after hanging his coat. "Us, too." He walked over to Kaname, and hugged her suddenly, squeezing her oh so tight before allowing her a chance to breath again. "Thank you" he said."

"_What?"_ Kaname was taken aback. He'd hugged her many times before; but, this felt different somehow, both vulnerable and invincible at the same time. And… what was that, glimmering like a small jewel in the car light… was that a tear at the corner of one of his eyes? A tear? In his eye? In the Terminator's eye? "For the gun?"

"For _everything,"_ Sousuke said so quietly that Kaname almost missed what he said. He tightened his hold again and kissed her.

"Mrmmlmr," was all that Kaname could say. Usually she was one that increased the passion in their kissing. This time, it was him. She certainly wasn't going to argue the order of things, or spend too much time thinking about it. She gave back as good as she got, and tested him again. Essentially, the tongue she slipped in his mouth was a way of saying 'time for this lesson again.'

One thing that a good teacher can tell you: there are times that he or she can learn something very important from those that they teach. Kaname was no exception. Everything was a blur, so she really didn't know who did what to whom first, when certain things happened, or even why, for that matter. The answer wasn't certain, in any case. It could have been the alcohol. It could have been the fact that Sousuke was just happy to be alive, after the harrowing car ride. It could have been the curvy look to Kaname's body as she stool half in light and half in darkness. It might have been an emotional blowtorch, finally cutting the rest of the way through the thick and sturdy lock on Sousuke's mental bank vault.

_It could be all of those, or none._

*whop*

That small noise was the only sound in the garage, aside from the pinging noise that the engine made as it cooled down.

Kaname jumped, ever so slightly. She didn't disengage from the kissing.

_*whappp whappp whappp*_

The noise was somewhat louder now, and came at precise intervals. Kaname made happier noises in her kissing, as if something had turned _her_ motor on. She was in a world devoid of thought and focus, so she had not made any sense out of the pattern yet. They action that caused the noise was all that drove her now.

_*whp whp whappp whp*_ was followed by _*whp whp whappp whp*_

It was Sousuke who broke the clench. He said "I know there's something we both want. But you have to show me that you learned your lesson." His words made it sound as if he really didn't want to wait that long.

"Sousuke?" Kaname happened to look at the car, just as the lights went out. "The car… it-" The car! It was a gift, and also a reward. "Oh." She understood. Morse Code. "Ohhhh-hhh-hh-h." She remembered the pattern, now.

_She pieced it together. Dash dash dash… dot dot dash dot… dot dot dash dot._

O… F… F….

"But… _here_…." Kaname sounded torn, standing there in the dark, just a footstep or two away from the warmth and light of their home.

Sousuke didn't say a word. He simply pulled back on Kaname's bra-strap one more time, further this time, letting it snap back against her back.

***whop***

There were no more words spoken. Kaname took her shirt off in record time, throwing it who knows where.

The bra soon flew off into the dark.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**Author's note:**

_Morse code is a __character encoding__ scheme used in __telecommunication__ that encodes __text__ characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations called dots and dashes or dits and dahs. Morse code is named for __Samuel F. B. Morse__, an inventor of the __telegraph__._

_The International Morse Code encodes the 26 English letters A through Z, some non-English letters, the __Arabic numerals__ and a small set of punctuation and procedural signals . There is no distinction between upper and lower case letters. Each Morse code symbol is formed by a sequence of dots and dashes. The dot duration is the basic unit of time measurement in Morse code transmission. The duration of a dash is three times the duration of a dot. Each dot or dash within a character is followed by period of signal absence, called a space, equal to the dot duration. The letters of a word are __separated by__ a space of duration equal to three dots, and the words are separated by a space equal to seven dots. To increase the efficiency of encoding, Morse code was designed so that the length of each symbol is approximately __inverse to the frequency of occurrence__ in text of the English language character that it represents. Thus the most common letter in English, the letter "E", has the shortest code: a single dot. Because the Morse code elements are specified by proportion rather than specific time durations, the code is usually transmitted at the highest rate that the receiver is capable of decoding _


End file.
